The Finest Hours is the classic story of man against nature and how the worse of times can bring the best out of us.
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Being a father of three girls six years and younger makes it considerably hard to watch a full length film in its entirety in one sitting. All the kids ever want to watch is animated films like Tangled and Frozen but lucky for me I was given the opportunity to review The Finest Hours, which is a Disney film based on a true story. Once I told my oldest daughter that we were watching a Disney film she was all in. The other children can’t talk yet so I assumed they would be okay with it. So with one half of the family watching and the other mindlessly running a muck I was all set to battle my natural elements to complete the task of watching this film.
Here is the basic plot of the movie for those who have not seen it yet.
Based on the extraordinary true story of the greatest smallboat rescue in Coast Guard history, THE FINEST HOURS is a tale of courage, loyalty and honor in the face of overwhelming odds. When a massive storm strikes off the coast of Cape Cod, it rips a T-2 oil tanker in half, trapping more than 30 sailors on its rapidly sinking stern. As Captain Bernie Webber (Chris Pine) and his crew set out in a 12-seat rescue boat to save them, Chief Engineer Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) struggles to buy his men more time. Packed with heroic larger-than-life action and driven by the men’s faith in their mission, themselves and one another, THE FINEST HOURS is a triumph.
I’m a big fan of historically based films especially those created by Disney like Remember The Titans and The Rookie so I came into this film with high expectations. Sadly this film didn’t live up to my hopes because it lacked character development. From the beginning it starts off with a forgettable love story between Bernie Webber (Chris Pine) and Miriam Webber (Holliday Grainger) that the film rushes past without setting the foundation that would make me feel the gravity of Bernie’s decision to sail into deadly waters. In general, I didn’t feel much of a connection to any of the characters and because of that the rescue though miraculous didn’t cause an emotional stir within me. I didn’t feel relief or elation when the movie climaxed with the unbelievable rescue of the stranded men on the oil tanker. I thought it was amazingly lucky but it didn’t affect me the way films such as these usually do.
On the positive side this film did capture the dangers of the ocean and the sacrifice many men and women make when their livelihood is centered at sea.
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On the positive side this film did capture the dangers of the ocean and the sacrifice many men and women make when their livelihood is centered at sea. I can’t help but have great respect for these people because what they do directly affects someone like me who lives on an island in the middle of the Pacific.
This film also dives into the question of what makes a leader. Is it when the conditions are perfect or is it when the storms of life is busting down your door? The characters of Bernie and Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) seem to answer that question as they both transform from meek to stalwart men because of the forging fire that the storm created. Made me wonder what kind of leader would I be when my personal storms hit my family and I. Will I be stalwart or will I be meek? I guess only time will tell.
Overall this film is a one time watch for me. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in ocean heroics, however, I’d go in with low expectations.
The Finest Hours is officially out on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.
Check out this deleted scene from the film:
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Photo: Youtube/Disney Movie Trailers
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